


Afire

by Kalira



Category: Naruto
Genre: (Neji Pines and Angsts Melodramatically), Angst, Desperation, Fandom Trumps Hate, Fandom Trumps Hate 2020, Feels, Happy Ending, Longing, M/M, Melodrama, Overstimulation, Pining, Sex Pollen, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:08:59
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,257
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27812068
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kalira/pseuds/Kalira
Summary: A hard battle with a poison specialist leaves Neji suffering an unexpected toxin; the effects bring Neji and Lee, the focus of his fiercely-supressed longings, closer - but will it only be physically, or will it be the catalyst for something more to bloom between them?
Relationships: Hyuuga Neji/Rock Lee
Comments: 15
Kudos: 69
Collections: Fandom Trumps Hate 2020





	Afire

**Author's Note:**

  * For [perfectjustice](https://archiveofourown.org/users/perfectjustice/gifts).



> This was written for perfectjustice as part of [Fandom Trumps Hate](https://fandomtrumpshate.dreamwidth.org/profile); thank you so much, you were a delight to work with on the plans for this and it was a joyful surprise to have one of my little rareships chosen! Thank you for your patience and kindness as well, and, ah, as you can see, the fic went a bit over initial projections - I hope you enjoy!

One last glance over the small battlefield - all was quiet, the enemy nin down and not getting back up; even the fierce boy who Neji had been facing, struggling to keep away from his poisoned blades and worse, the puffs of airborne poison or exploding pellets - and Neji released Byakugan.

“Neji! Are you all right?” Lee called, approaching rapidly. He was grinning, despite the split just beside one of his eyebrows that was still slowly oozing blood. And well he might look pleased, Neji supposed - that was the only injury beyond bruises and scrapes on either of them.

Neji’s eyes tracked along the faint bloody trail that lead down from Lee’s brow to his strong jaw, then disappeared beneath it. His breath caught. “I’m fine.” Neji assured his teammate, nodding shallowly as he steadied his breathing by force of will. Lee was breathing hard as well, the muscles of his chest and stomach flexing with it as he came to a stop a few paces away.

Neji set his own jaw, stomach turning over with an uncomfortable flutter. The one poison he hadn’t been able to dodge. Neji hadn’t known what it was at first, nor why the boy he was facing had first laughed, and then cursed even as he taunted Neji. But now. . .

Neji could feel the tingling heat lighting in his blood, and he had _been_ exposed to the fierce flame orchid before. Though only to the first blush of its pollen, to allow him to know the feeling - and know the risk - never to the full force of the pollen fortified with the orchid’s nectar from the depths of its blooming period. Never . . . _before_.

“Are you sure?” Lee asked, and years ago Neji would have taken it as an insult, _especially_ from Lee, but now. . . He knew Lee was earnestly concerned for him, not because he thought Neji was weak, but because he _cared_.

Neji’s heart squeezed as he assured Lee curtly that he was, and then pounded almost painfully against his ribs as Lee reached out to him. Neji jerked away immediately, Lee’s hands - his fingertips the only bare parts of his skin - only just making contact with Neji’s own bare skin, a brush over his arm beneath his sleeve. It was enough. Neji felt the effects of the orchid rushing to new heights.

It wasn’t uncontrollable, however. Neji locked it down, gritting his teeth. He gestured at Lee, who gave him an uncertain look but promised the same, that he was well and uninjured. Lee had checked their assailants for anything of use or importance while Neji secured the battlefield - and Neji had, very carefully, checked the poison specialist for anything that would help _his_ problem; he didn’t curse when he found nothing mostly because he’d had a sinking feeling he wouldn’t - so a quick doton to clear the field and swallow up any sign of the battle, and they were ready to move.

Neji knew how to handle the adrenaline comedown after a battle, and he focused on it absently as they ran. It wasn’t why Neji’s movements were less graceful than usual, but he hoped faintly that Lee would think so, and would not ask.

Neji shivered as they paused, and he knew he should check further out with the Byakugan, but he ached distractingly, his cock more than half hard and dizzying pulses of heat flaring in his veins.

“We’re clear.” Lee said, hopping up _all too close_ on the same branch beside Neji.

Neji’s breath caught and he moved away, nodding curtly. Lee frowned, but didn’t call him on the rudeness even as Neji suggested, in abrupt monosyllables, that they get moving again. Lee only nodded in return and smiled brightly as he gestured for Neji to go ahead.

They fell in roughly side-by-side again, resuming their run, and Neji hid his grimace as he moved. The discomfort was . . . considerably easier to ignore than the driving heat sparked by the fierce flame orchid, the _want_ pulsing in him as the insidious pollen worked its way through his body.

The force of it made a mockery of any fluttering desire Neji had ever been distracted by on a mission or training before, and he continually had to make himself look to choose his path ahead, rather than. . .

Neji glanced sideways just as Lee landed lightly at his side, legs folding, body a graceful curve as he crouched, muscles bunching as he leapt again. Neji swallowed hard, his cock _throbbing_ \- and nearly missed his own next leap.

It was . . . not the first time Neji had taken notice of how much Lee’s jumpsuit displayed his lean, impressive body. Normally, however, he could . . . control it better.

Normally there wasn’t a toxin in his blood, Neji thought sardonically, that was stoking the kind of _need_ he had never felt on his wildest days, and sending fantastical imaginings through his mind. Lee began moving a little faster, cutting off at a new angle, and Neji followed with only a cursory glance at their surroundings, relying on his trust in his teammate. He shuddered again, muscles tensing deep into his core, and realised abruptly that he was breathing through his open mouth. He closed it sharply, wincing.

“Neji.” Lee called his name almost gently, and Neji frowned a little as he followed Lee to the ground, trying to think past the fog of imagining what Lee’s hands would feel like on his bare skin. He _knew_ what Lee’s hands felt like, of course - a maze of calluses and scars, strong but exceedingly careful outside of battle - but Neji couldn’t help but think-

“What’s wrong, Neji?” Lee asked, moving close, and Neji stiffened.

“What?” he asked, then startled a little more at the sound of his own voice - it was rougher than he’d ever heard it, and Neji spared a moment of prayer that the heat in the low tone was only in his mind.

“Something is wrong. You assured me you were not injured, Neji, but if you need to rest-” Lee shook his head firmly, a determined light in his wide eyes, his jaw set. “You are moving slowly, and you are never so stiff. You are _struggling_. Let me help you!”

The heat at Neji’s core flared into a yawning ache. Oh _kami_ , for Lee to _help_ him-

Neji shook his head sharply, his chest aching almost as much as the coil of arousal in the pit of his stomach, the spreading tendrils of heat pulsing in his veins. Oh, he _wanted_ , and hell, he was sure Lee _would_ help him - Lee would do _anything_ for his teammates - but-

“It cannot be helped. I will be fine.” Neji assured Lee honestly. “We can keep moving- _Don’t!_ ”

Lee froze, hand barely having made contact with Neji’s cheek before he flinched away. Neji felt awful for the look on Lee’s face, but both the feeling and the expression were swiftly gone. It was for Lee’s sake Neji had been so harsh, in any case.

“I refuse to ignore you _hurting_!” Lee said staunchly, and while Neji protested and _continued_ protesting, he had known from that moment that he wouldn’t be able to get out of giving up what had happened. Lee was too stubborn and he was no fool.

Neji put him off and kept a good handful of paces between them - that second touch had stirred his blood even more, and Neji’s head was spinning with how much he _wanted_ \- and Lee didn’t approach again, but he _watched_ Neji closely, pressing him for an answer he did not wish to give until-

“ _Oh._ ” Lee said barely a moment after Neji admitted that it had been his fight with that damnable boy and his toxins that was the source of his trouble. “Oh. Neji. Fierce flame orchid.” he identified without further clues, a tremor in his voice, and Neji’s eyes widened, snapping up to meet his gaze. “That is why. . .”

Neji flushed painfully as Lee’s eyes dropped down his body. His stomach muscles tensed and an almost painful throb settled at the base of his cock.

“Oh, but Neji, that- that _can_ be helped.” Lee said earnestly, and Neji’s muscles locked up as he approached, concern joining the determination on his face. There were the faintest beginnings of a blush rising in his cheeks.

Neji swallowed thickly, shaking his head. He tried to take a step back but couldn’t quite make himself move. Lee approached him, reaching out though not quite close enough to touch yet. All this time, he thought with a twist of despair that melded unpleasantly with the desire that would not, _could_ not die down, and Lee had never, ever before. . .

“I can help you! I _will_ , Neji,” Lee smiled slightly, a little weak compared to his usual bright grins, “you must know I would. You should have told me as soon as you were. . .” He glanced down Neji’s body again. “You must be hurting so. . .”

“No.” Neji said roughly, and Lee frowned, eyes meeting his own once more.

“Neji.” Lee’s tone, verging on mock sternness, startled a faint laugh from Neji; it was . . . surreal and out of place with the heat in his veins and the- the _offer_ Lee was trying to make him. “I _know_ you must be- I know as well as you do what the fierce flame orchid does to the body when it is so fortified, when it is an _attack_.” He cleared his throat, blushing again. “Or- As well as you did, before this.”

“No, I- _Yes_.” Neji bit off a curse. “It’s- But no, I won’t let you. . . I can’t accept your-” he paused, mouth twisting, an aching pang making him shudder - it felt as though his own body were punishing him for refusing what he wanted so very much, both physically and. . . “I can’t accept your help, Lee. Of course I knew you would offer. Would try. . .”

It was a large part of why he had said nothing.

Lee frowned, folding his hands together. “Neji. . . Is it that you do not wish,” his blush was deepening with every word, “to do this, or are you solely trying to spare _me_?” he asked, and Neji opened his mouth, heart aching and every beat making the dizzying arousal flooding his body build higher.

“I care for you too much,” Neji said, far too honest, and knew that he would regret the words even more later, when the orchid’s toxin was gone from his body and blood, “to allow you to be pushed into this. I know you would do anything to aid a comrade, Lee, but this is not. . .”

Neji swallowed hard as Lee was suddenly right in front of him, hands reaching out. He jerked away, the ache of desire making him clumsy, and Lee caught him.

“Oh, Neji.” Lee cupped his face, then leaned in and kissed him, and Neji’s eyes widened even as Lee pulled away after barely more than a brush of faintly damp lips. “I care for you deeply as well!”

Neji thought he managed to hide his flinch. That- That stung more than the fiercest ache of the pollen affecting him. He knew it was true, of course, but it was not. . . At least, he thought with a flicker of melancholy, Lee had not seen the depth of Neji’s own feeling in his words.

“It will not be a hardship to help you in this,” Lee said, voice low, “Neji, please, allow me to help you.”

His hands gripped a little tighter and his breathing was verging on unsteady and Neji realised only belatedly - the toxin didn’t impair one’s mind, not any more than natural arousal, but Neji was slow and distracted with both the physical burn and the strength of his desire - why Lee had come so very close. Had _kissed_ him.

Having breathed it in, and so recently, remnants of the pollen would be carried in Neji’s lungs and lingering at his mouth still, and now. . . It would not be nearly so strong - perhaps not even enough to drive Lee to aching distraction the way it was Neji, perhaps only enough he could have ignored it - but it was beginning to affect Lee as well. He had contaminated himself, approaching Neji as he had; had _chosen_ it, so easily.

Neji’s heart twinged again, even as he let himself reach for Lee. He smiled when Neji’s hands smoothed over his arms, his shoulders - though he was relaxed, they were hard with muscle beneath Neji’s almost-caress. It was far from the first time Neji’s hands had been on his teammate but _now_. . .

“May I?” Lee asked, fingers curling as he reached out, hand stopping a little shy of Neji’s shoulder. He swallowed, then nodded, shrugging his bag off and dropping it aside.

Lee’s knuckles brushed his shoulder, and then Lee stroked down his body gently, moving closer as Neji’s hands tightened on his shoulders. Neji gasped as Lee kissed him again, just as soft and sweet, but lingering this time.

He met Lee’s dark eyes, finding a tentative question there. He was. . .

Neji’s heart twinged. Lee wasn’t sure if it was all right for him to _kiss_ Neji, though he’d offered to help him through the effects of the fierce flame orchid; offered to _fuck him_.

Hands sliding up behind Lee’s neck, Neji kissed him back, firmly, nipping and sucking gently at his lower lip and then inviting him into a deeper kiss. Lee made a rough sound that shot a tingling sensation all the way down to Neji’s _toes_ , his hard body pressing up against Neji’s firmly as he took up the invitation.

And how, Neji thought dizzily, feeling a little lost from the heat of Lee’s mouth against his own, tongue sliding along his own in such a gentle exploration. He pulled away, still cupping Neji’s face, and Neji tightened his grip on Lee’s shoulders for balance, swaying, the heat already built in his lower belly surging.

He licked his lips, then pulled away again, breathing coming rough and a little too quick. He glanced down Lee’s body, greedily taking in the flex of muscles as Lee’s chest heaved with deep breaths, then froze, his eyes on the prominent line of Lee’s cock, standing proudly outlined by his vibrant green-

Neji swallowed. He’d . . . _seen_ Lee before, of course, but. . .

Lee took a step back, rubbing the back of his neck, and Neji shivered, realising he was almost _panting_. He thought he might be flushing to match Lee, but smiled at him, eyes flicking back down to his cock, imagining- Neji closed his eyes for a moment, shaking his head, and reached for the button of his shirt.

Lee watched him with wide eyes and Neji cleared his throat, stripping away his shirt and top layers quickly, letting them fall. He paused, and Lee coughed, reaching for the collar of his jumpsuit.

A thought rising through his distraction, Neji hurriedly turned away and knelt, rummaging through his things. He pulled out his travel bedroll and spread it out over the thin underbrush and the dirt, then sat on it as he stripped away his sandals and trousers, shoving them over with his pack. He hissed as his throbbing cock bobbed with the movement, putting a hand down to stroke himself gingerly, licking his lips.

It _ached_ , a hollow promise that his own touch would _not_ be enough.

Callused hands smoothed over his shoulders and Neji’s breath caught as he turned, burning even hotter under the soft warmth of Lee’s touch. Lee smiled at him, and Neji twisted a little more, leaning up for a kiss, _needing_ to feel him again.

Lee made a startled sound, but returned Neji’s kiss immediately, pressing closer. His chest was hard and warm and _bare_ against Neji’s back, and his stomach muscles clenched at the feeling of Lee so close.

“Neji-” Lee said against his mouth as they parted for breath, and Neji shifted, turning against him and pushing him back until they sprawled across the bedroll together, taking his mouth in another demanding kiss the moment they landed.

Lee groaned, jerking beneath him, and Neji smoothed his hands over Lee’s lean, hard body, wishing he could _see_ Lee but unable to force himself away, to stop kissing Lee, to stop _touching_ him, just for that. Neji’s hips twitched, his cock sliding against Lee’s lean, hard thigh.

Lee shifted, one thigh pressing up between Neji’s, making him groan as it pressed more firmly against his cock. “Feel good?” Lee asked, kissing along his jaw, and Neji managed something that was more of a moan than words in answer, _aching_ with want.

Lee’s hands slid over his sides and gripped his hips, and Neji gasped as he found himself suddenly turned onto his back instead, Lee heavy atop him, Lee’s cock slotting perfectly against his own this time. It felt even better this way, and Neji reached up, hands dragging over Lee’s back, pulling at him as though they could get any closer.

 _They could. . ._ Neji quashed the thought, the thin thread, the _want_ for that.

“What do you want?” Lee asked breathlessly, between kisses that roamed Neji’s cheek and jaw as much as they actually caught his mouth. He moved restlessly against Neji, grinding their cocks together firmly.

“I don’t- That is-” Neji gasped, shuddering as pleasure spiked, a million tiny stinging blooms, beneath his skin. His hips jerked, rolling harder against Lee’s only to find him moving easily in answer, the pressure almost painful as they pushed together a little too hard, Lee not restraining himself much. “Like this.” he managed finally. “We can-” He broke off with a moan.

Lee pressed slightly sloppy kisses to his jaw and neck and Neji’s skin _burned_ under the caresses. “ _Yes._ Whatever you want.” he mumbled against Neji’s throat, arching against Neji and pressing him down hard into the earth through the relatively thin shield of the bedroll beneath them.

 _Just like this_ , Neji thought, this wasn’t . . . too much, wasn’t-

It wasn’t what he wanted and it _was_ still too much, a beautiful temptation he could never keep, but he could hold himself back to just this. This would be enough. Neji groaned and thrust up against Lee, their cocks pressing together firmly. Lee moaned, but adjusted himself over Neji and when he moved again it was easier; less almost-too-much pain and more a flare of pleasure and banked, growing heat.

Lee braced an arm beside his shoulders, twisting, putting more of a gap between them, and Neji gasped a protest, dragging at him. Lee groaned, knuckles dragging down Neji’s side and over his hip, then up to stroke his cock, pressing them more snugly together.

Neji’s throat tightened and he thought he might have said something but had no idea what words had escaped him. If his mind hadn’t been so swamped with pleasure, his eyes fixed on Lee’s face, intent on burning this into his memory, he would have been mortified, fretting over what could have slipped out. As it was he barely noticed.

Lee had to put his hand back on the ground for support after a few strokes, unbalanced by their movements together and - Neji hoped, watching his flushed face twist with it, hearing the low, rough sounds in his throat - by pleasure.

Neji curled one calf up over Lee’s own leg, arching his entire body up as they rutted together, and the pleasure swept through him in burning waves, dizzying and almost overwhelming, but-

“This isn’t enough.” Lee panted in his ear, then whined. Neji’s throat tightened, eyes burning, throat feeling raw as he opened his mouth to respond only to catch on a moan, hips jerking. “This- It isn’t, is it?” Lee asked raggedly, kissing Neji sloppily and then pulling away, panting, to meet his eyes. “It. . .”

“No.” Neji agreed, his body burning with frustrated arousal, even as they continued to thrust against each other, sparking tense pleasure with every rough slide. It was _close_ \- Lee was so close, so hot and hard and _wonderful_ against him - but it wasn’t _enough_ . . . his own treacherous desires swirled around his head, driven more fiercely by the searing heat sparked by the orchid’s pollen. “No, it’s good - _so_ good, you’re. . .” Neji stroked Lee’s face, then pulled his hand away, breath catching. “But it’s not going to be enough. We-”

“Take me.” Lee said, and Neji’s eyes snapped back to his, widening. Lee’s face was deeply flushed and he bit his lip, but he didn’t look away even as he squirmed - and he felt _delicious_ , pressed fully against Neji, all his powerful muscles twitching and shivering with the movement. “Neji-”

“ _Lee_ , I-”

“Neji, please,” Lee shivered again, all the way down to his toes, and Neji _felt_ his cock twitch, pressed against Neji’s belly and his own cock, “I- Take me, come inside me.” He ducked his head a little, though with them so close it hardly made a difference; he couldn’t hide from Neji like this. “I- I want it.”

 _I wish you wanted more_ , Neji thought instantly, but it was drowned by the dizzying desire for just that, for what Lee had _asked for_ ; Neji imagined sinking between Lee’s lean, hard thighs and driving into the heat of his body, what it would _feel_ like, how he would-

Neji groaned raggedly, hands tight on Lee’s hips. Lee called his name uncertainly and Neji dragged a hand up to cup his neck, hauling him into a hard kiss. “ _Fuck_ , Lee, I want you so much.” he groaned against Lee’s mouth. “Like this and-” he broke off, forcing himself to choke back the words.

Lee made a softer sound of pleasure, shifting and pushing against him, then pulled back, and Neji grimaced, forcing himself to let go.

Neji sat up, propped on one hand, then froze, nearly falling back as he took in Lee before him. He leaned back, spreading his legs invitingly, his blush spreading down his neck and chest, one hand almost tentatively wrapping around his thick cock. Neji swallowed thickly and forced himself the rest of the way up, then reached almost clumsily for his pack, rummaging through it until he found a salve from his kit that would be-

Neji felt warm, but the want driving him on kept him from hesitating too much, not while Lee was _offering himself_ so easily - so beautifully.

Lee’s eyes lit as Neji moved up between his thighs, spreading them easily wider - of course, Neji thought belatedly even as he admired the play of muscles and smoothed a hand up one inner thigh; he had seen Lee’s legs splay far further than this, only it had never been in _this_ context and somehow even in the dreamy imaginings he _tried_ not to indulge he had never thought to put it together with. . .

Neji swallowed hard, opening the salve, then looked up at Lee. “Are- Are you sure?” he asked, left hand squeezing Lee’s thigh firmly. His cock throbbed painfully, achy tension strung up through the pit of his stomach all the way to the base of his throat. He _wanted_ Lee so much, and the need the orchid’s pollen had stoked in him was only the most superficial part of it, but- “I _want_ you, but not if you. . .”

Lee grabbed him by the shoulders, one hand tangling in his hair, and hauled him forwards until he nearly fell off his knees, kissing him fiercely. Neji moaned, nearly melting into it, pressing in close and nipping gently at Lee’s mouth.

“ _Please_ , Neji, I’m sure; I want you.” Lee nodded hurriedly even as their lips parted.

Neji rubbed his knuckles up Lee’s inner thigh, dipping lower, kissing Lee’s chest, turning his hand over and smoothing over Lee’s thigh. “You have . . . no idea how much I want. . .” He shook his head slightly, his voice catching in his throat.

Lee wriggled, knees bending up a little more, and Neji nuzzled his chest, free hand coming up over his abdomen, tracing the sharply-defined lines of his muscles. Neji fought to draw a deep breath, dizzy with want and with Lee being so _close_ and so open to him.

Neji stroked Lee’s stomach, then his cock, nudging against his own hand, which he hurriedly dropped, hips rising into Neji’s touch as he groaned, voice low. Neji shivered, wrapping his fingers around the silky heat of Lee’s erection, stroking slowly, sliding over the sticky slick smears of precome - probably his own as well as Lee’s, he thought, with a surge of heat that made his cock throb.

“ _Neji_. . .” Lee moaned, legs shifting restlessly, hips rocking upwards again. Neji’s stomach muscles tightened as he lifted his gaze to watch Lee’s flushed face, stroking his cock, kneading distractedly at his thigh. “Neji, please. . .”

Neji shook himself, dragging his eyes away and squeezing Lee’s cock gently before releasing it, making him whine. Neji wasn’t sure if it was from the pressure or the lack of contact, and hesitated thoughtlessly for a moment before Lee’s thigh bumped the salve and Neji remembered what he was doing.

Fingers carefully if hastily slicked, Neji reached for Lee and felt breathless as he so easily arched his back and spread his legs wide again, flushed cock up against his belly and body open to-

Neji swallowed, glancing up at Lee’s face, then reaching between his thighs to his ass, rubbing carefully over tightly-furled muscle and not yet trying to exert any pressure. Lee _moaned_ , and Neji fought not to reach for himself - it wouldn’t really _help_ , anyway, with the fierce flame orchid burning through his blood, touching himself would only offer further frustration at this point.

He focused on Lee, cautiously spreading the slick of the salve, nudging gently, pausing as Lee twitched. “Lee?”

Lee made a rough little sound, then caught Neji’s arm, and he pulled back immediately. “Lee, I’m-”

Neji broke off, eyes wide, as Lee grabbed the salve for himself, then tipped further back, resting on his left arm and spreading his legs even wider as he reached between them, forearm brushing along his hard cock.

“ _Lee._ ” Neji managed, slightly strangled, and stared as Lee pushed two fingers inside himself without pause, moaning and twisting them as they sank deeper. Neji shook, putting a hand down by his knee to brace himself, swallowing. He couldn’t drag his eyes away from the sight of Lee’s fingers working inside himself, twisting and shoving in rough little pushes, spreading a little as he quickly added a third finger, hips tilting as he moaned Neji’s name.

Neji looked up at Lee’s face, finding his wet, reddened lips parted as he breathed roughly, his eyes a little glazed but still hot and focused on Neji. Lee’s arm flexed and Neji followed the line of it swiftly right back down to his busily working hand and fingers, spreading himself open with every little rocking nudge, and Neji all but _whined_ with want.

“Neji. . .” Lee moaned again, hips twitching as he pushed his fingers deeper inside himself, thighs tensing and toes curling. He made a desperate little sound, his hand and wrist crumpling almost weakly as he pressed against himself, and Neji groaned, lunging and tumbling Lee down flat on the bedroll. His fingers slipped over Neji’s thigh then caught at his waist as Neji found himself settling easily between Lee’s spread thighs, opened to welcome him in; an arch of his hips and-

Neji moaned roughly as his cock sank into Lee’s heat, dropping his guiding hand once the head was driving inside and using it to brace himself instead as he angled his hips to slide himself in even deeper, pleasure roaring through his body. Lee arched beneath him, keening, legs folding around Neji’s hips as his body tightened in a fluttery squeeze around Neji’s cock that only encouraged him further. He thrust shallowly, hitching and undecided, then slowed with a soft whine, cringing.

He’d been eager and dizzy with want and while he’d meant to come close, to touch- He’d been thoughtless to push so fast, no matter how smoothly Lee had seemed to take it, _fuck_. He could have _hurt_ \- He might-

“Neji.” Lee said, his voice thick and rough.

“I shouldn’t- Are you all right?” Neji asked painfully, and Lee moaned, hips arching and legs flexing around Neji.

“You are _inside me_.” Lee said, sounding choked, then easing into something heated and dreamy. “ _Ooh_ , Neji-”

Neji shuddered, head hanging, and Lee moaned again, hands sliding over his shoulders and down his arms, then over his chest. He _was_ inside Lee, and he was having trouble comprehending that even as his hips rocked in tiny motions against Lee’s lean thighs and ass, his cock wrapped in welcoming heat, Lee’s muscles gripping him in little fluttering squeezes. He couldn’t quite stop himself.

“I can take it, Neji,” Lee said, breathless and hot, giving a sudden, slightly crooked grin, “I can take _you_.”

Neji struggled to catch his breath, staring back at Lee, and Lee moaned, muscles squeezing Neji’s cock more tightly for a moment even as his hands tightened on Neji’s shoulders, and then-

Neji gasped as he found himself moving abruptly; Lee rolled them over, powerful legs locked around Neji’s waist easily keeping Neji against him - buried inside him, _fuck_ , he felt _amazing_ , hot and tight and slick and rocking against Neji like he only wanted more - as they moved.

“I will take care of both of us, then.” Lee said as Neji’s back settled flat against the bedroll, and Neji looked up with wide eyes. Lee grinned, wide and a little wild, as he wriggled and then bounced carefully on Neji’s cock, making him choke on a breathy cry, jerking up into the movement. “Is this good?” Lee asked, like that was a _question_.

Neji stroked him; thighs, hips, sides, stomach, cock, everything he could reach with shaking hands as Lee rocked on his cock, arching up into him. “ _So good_ , Lee, fuck, _you’re_ so good, I can’t. . .”

Lee beamed at him, and Neji did _not_ need that smile to be connected so easily to his cock’s responses, but he had a feeling after this it was definitely going to be. He couldn’t quite muster the focus to worry about it now. The heat curling through his entire body was somehow both dizzyingly more intense now that his cock was buried inside Lee and paled in comparison to the simple heat of _Lee’s body_ and the fire of the pleasure Neji was finding in their joining.

Neji moved a little and Lee shouted, eyes going wide and face momentarily blank with pleasure, clawing painfully at Neji’s arm and chest. He pushed down harder and Neji twitched, following him thoughtlessly as he pushed up, then slammed back down over Neji’s cock again.

Neji swallowed a curse, trying not to arch up too hard but _needing_ so deeply that-

Lee shifted over him and Neji cried out, fingers curling, gripping Lee’s thighs desperately hard as Lee began to ride his cock as though it came naturally. Neji twitched, rocking up into him, feeling as though Lee was _dragging_ the pleasure out of him with every movement. Hands still tight on his thighs - Neji couldn’t manage to force himself to ease that grip; fortunately it didn’t seem to be hampering Lee at all, Neji thought he might _scream_ if Lee _stopped_ \- Neji’s gaze slid over Lee’s body and up to his face.

Neji’s throat tightened. Lee looked. . .

His eyes were heavy-lidded, his mouth open and his face flushed as he moaned, loud and throaty, his hair messily tousled and bouncing as he moved. Neji grit his teeth against the lashing heat of pleasure so good it _ached_ , and- and almost missed Lee _moaning his name_.

Neji squeezed his eyes shut, only just realising there were tears in them as he reached higher, clinging to Lee’s hips and waist. Lee slowed his movements, rolling his hips and leaning down closer, their bodies shifting together as though this was something they _knew_ , could easily match one another in this akin to the way they matched one another sparring.

“Neji?” Lee’s soft murmur of his name held a note of concern but it was still a breathy, moaning thing that made Neji’s blood heat.

He opened his eyes and met Lee’s own, then dropped his gaze to Lee’s mouth. He was biting his lips, which were already redder than usual, swollen from the abuse. Neji caught the nape of his neck and his shoulder, arching up beneath him - fucking up into him, rolling his hips almost thoughtlessly to try and hit Lee’s sweet spot - and hauling him down that last little bit to bring their lips together.

Lee gave a much softer moan, all but melting into the slide of Neji’s mouth against his own, his body tightening around Neji’s cock in a needy clasp as he clung to Neji’s shoulders.

Neji kissed him deeply, straining to hold him close even as he shifted restlessly, still rocking on Neji’s cock even as he had come down so close they were pressed nearly chest to chest. Lee whimpered softly and Neji stroked his sides and back, gripping his hips and slowing his movements a little, easing them.

He _burned_ with need and his head was spinning at having Lee this way, but Neji didn’t want. . .

Neji trailed one hand up Lee’s arched back, sucking gently at his lower lip, and Lee moaned softly, rocking against him still but . . . gentler this time. One of Lee’s hands slid up to curl around his shoulder, and Neji kneaded at Lee’s hips, shuddering as pleasure seared through him.

Lee’s kiss grew a little rougher as he let out a low, needy sound, but he didn’t fight Neji’s hands keeping his movements restrained. Neji was glad - he wasn’t sure how much more self-restraint he _had_ right now, and Lee felt _incredible_ over him, against him, wrapped around his cock and _squeezing_ and-

Neji broke away from Lee’s mouth to throw his head back, groaning, toes curling as his body bowed. Lee shifted on top of him again, nuzzling his throat and kissing down his neck, making him shiver. He twisted restlessly, and Lee let out a sharp little cry, then bit his shoulder, shoving more firmly down on his cock.

Neji groaned breathlessly and stroked Lee’s hips and thighs, then up again over his waist and back, restless and slightly clumsy. He couldn’t _think_ much less move smoothly with Lee rocking on top of him, muscles wrapped hot and needy around his cock.

Lee braced himself on Neji’s chest, pushing upright, settling heavily across Neji’s hips for a moment, making him twitch, hips jerking up. Lee’s hands curled into fists on his chest and Neji wasn’t sure for a moment if it was Lee’s weight compressing his ribs or the fiery pleasure racing through him that was stealing his breath.

Lee steadied again, shivering and flushed, and Neji gave a soft cry as he started to move faster, thighs flexing as he rode Neji almost desperately. He bucked up, falling into the driving rhythm Lee had set, clutching at him as he moaned, then began to almost _whine_ half-indecipherable words between gasping breaths.

Neji groaned, jaw clenching, as Lee ground down against him hard, and twitched, eyes wide, when he pulled one hand back, wavering, and palmed his flushed cock. Lee’s head hung as he gasped, shuddering, and his cock twitched, spilling come over his wrist and Neji’s stomach. Neji watched, enraptured, but only for a moment before the clutching heat of Lee’s body was just-

_Too much._

Neji arched, feeling Lee’s weight only distantly as his hips left the ground entirely, his throat locking on a rough cry as he tried to voice the pleasure lashing through him. His climax was fiery and intense, almost _painful_ as it surged through him, and he shuddered as he clawed at Lee, catching hold of his strong thighs again.

Neji keened as he came down again, falling into a lax sprawl across the bedroll, and vaguely realised Lee was stroking his cheek and jaw, down his neck, nuzzling his cheek and pressing kisses there between shaky breaths. Neji reached up, tipping his head to catch Lee’s mouth in a kiss, something in his chest purring at the contact even as he trailed a hand over Lee’s shoulder and down his arm, squeezing lightly.

Lee gave a soft moan, relaxing and slumping even closer, one elbow settling against the bedroll beside Neji’s head, though he was only barely supporting any of his own weight on it. Neji sighed as their lips parted, Lee’s brow coming to rest against his own, the contact only shielded by the hitai-ate he hadn’t removed.

Neji’s hands roamed over Lee’s back and sides, feeling the quick thump of his heartbeat, and his deep, rapid breathing - that was a little gratifying, in a strange way; Lee had such endurance and yet. . .

Lee kissed him again, softer this time, and Neji’s heart _ached_ even as he returned it, gentle and-

Not quite jerking away from the kiss, Neji bit back a sound and turned his head. Lee nuzzled his jaw instead, and it wasn’t . . . helping.

A tickle of breath over the top of his neck and Neji’s toes curled. Heat coiled in his belly again, _still_ , even with the power of his orgasm it had never quite eased, and. . . Neji groaned, hands curling into fists as they dropped to the bedroll beside him and he pressed them down hard, muscles tensing.

“It’s not over, is it?” Lee asked against his ear, and Neji swallowed a whine. He didn’t quite manage to catch it all back. “It’s all right. I promised to take care of you, darling. To _take you_.” Lee kissed his jaw just beneath his ear as his eyes snapped open, breath catching. “It’s all right, come on. . .”

Lee pushed himself up slowly even as Neji reached for him, but he wavered as he got up onto his knees again. His cock was still hard too, Neji realised. At least, he supposed, there was that - it wasn’t solely Lee offering up his body to ease Neji through the torture of the toxin-stoked desire. Even if he had taken it upon himself with that damned kiss.

“Easy.” Neji said, voice rough, and reached for Lee again, stomach muscles tightening as he sat up - and _fuck_ , pleasure so keen it ached knifed through him as his cock shifted inside Lee again with the movement. “Come on, just-”

Lee relaxed under his hands, letting Neji move him easily, even when he pushed to tip Lee onto his back, Lee only let himself fall, going lightly with Neji’s hands sliding over his skin. Neji swallowed, throat tightening and breath hitching at the easy display of trust.

Lee’s thighs tightened around Neji’s waist, calves folding behind him and tugging at him, holding him close and drawing him tighter - as though he could possibly have pulled _away_. Not when it was the last thing he wanted. . . Not when the fierce flame orchid was still lighting fiery need in his blood and bones as well.

Neji moved in close, bracing one hand on the bedroll beside Lee and bending- He hesitated, but Lee moaned, arching beneath him - Neji groaned, hips hitching into the rippling clasp around his cock - and winding his arms around Neji’s shoulders, pulling him into a kiss.

Neji shivered, feeling sparking tingles racing under his skin and Lee’s hands sliding over his shoulders and back, up his neck and pushing into his hair. He rolled his hips gently, tentatively, setting off another spiking flare of pleasure that almost hurt and dragging a thin keen from Lee’s mouth, muffled against his own.

He pulled away just enough to gasp for breath, needing to ask - to _know_ \- but before he could voice anything resembling a question Lee had moaned a breathy little plea and hauled him back down, lips warm and soft against his own.

Body aching for more, Neji moved carefully, angling his hips and moaning into Lee’s kiss as his cock sank impossibly just that little bit deeper into the slick heat of Lee’s body. He cried out, fingers tightening on Neji’s shoulders and back - but his legs tightened too, pulling at Neji as though he could get even _closer_ somehow.

Neji nuzzled his face as they parted for breath, rocking back and letting himself slide immediately into Lee’s body again, murmuring soothing nonsense syllables, stroking Lee’s cheek with one hand. Lee leaned into it with a crooning sound, legs shifting restlessly higher, then down Neji’s back and ass again as he repeated the careful, slower motion.

He had only made a few more easy, gentle strokes before Lee began to shift beneath him, pressing up into Neji each time his cock hilted, letting out little needy sounds when Neji pulled away again. Neji could feel the powerful burn building higher inside himself, and the ache of desire was outpacing the ache of his overused body.

Neji groaned, turning his face aside and biting at Lee’s shoulder as he moved a little more forcefully on the next stroke, still trying to control himself. Lee arched beneath him with a sharp cry and Neji fought himself for a moment, slowing, then stopping - buried as deeply as he could be in Lee’s body. He grimaced, shifting slightly and wondering. . .

“Neji. _Please._ ” Lee moaned in his ear, fingers catching in his hair even as they moved to his shoulders. “Please, please, _please_ , more than that, more than this, I-”

Neji shuddered, jaw clenching, tasting sweat on Lee’s skin. He couldn’t have told Lee no and the pleading. . .

Neji drew back and thrust hard, and Lee cried out, back arching and hips rocking up to meet him, legs flexing and tightening around him, then spreading a little wider to invite him closer still. Neji groaned as he leaned up a little - he swallowed as he saw the livid red marks of his teeth on Lee’s shoulder - and dragged a hand down Lee’s chest and side as he began to draw back.

Lee squirmed, muscles rippling around his cock, and Neji jerked, sheathing his cock fully again. Lee moaned approvingly, folding his legs up and fixing Neji with a look that was probably about as firm as he could manage, flushed and gasping shallowly. “You aren’t hurting me, _please_ , Neji you can’t _stop_ -” he broke off as Neji gripped his hip hard.

“I’m not going to stop.” Neji said, and he hadn’t known his own voice could reach that pitch, deep and ragged. He dragged Lee against himself as he rolled his hips, bringing a breathless cry from Lee’s lips as he tossed his head.

Neji dragged his hand down Lee’s thigh, feeling the flexing strength of hard muscle, then twisted a little, pushing. Lee let himself be moved with another moan, his legs spreading wider still and his back curving as Neji forced one thigh open wide and hooked the other up until Lee’s knee was over his shoulder as he bent over Lee once more.

Neji shuddered, hips hitching as he thrust again. Lee bent so easily beneath him and his hips angled up to take Neji so _well_ and-

Neji sank even deeper into his body and cried out softly at the flare of pleasure that made his head spin, feeling the shivers running through Lee in return. He stroked Lee’s right leg soothingly, up and down, thumb rubbing gently even as his hand finally stilled. “All right?” he asked, feeling the muscles quiver where Lee’s leg was pressed against his chest, beginning to pull back.

“ _Yes_ , oh- Oh, _Neji_ , yes, like-” Lee’s muddled confirmation broke into a sharp cry as Neji thrust hard again, driving into his body. Lee jerked and rocked to move with him despite being firmly caught between Neji and the ground and Neji groaned, his rhythm stuttering, sparking pleasure whiting out his vision for a moment.

He turned his head, lips brushing along Lee’s skin, then bit as Lee _squeezed_ around his cock and fiery tension rushed up his spine and coiled thickly in the pit of his stomach.

Lee whimpered, shifting beneath him, and Neji groaned as he slowly released the bite and tilted his head, rocking into Lee and folding him even tighter between Neji and the ground. He didn’t complain, reaching for Neji and catching hold of his shoulder, stroking his jaw.

Neji bent low, hips hitching as Lee’s left leg wrapped around him again, pulling him in harder. He laughed breathlessly, more than half a moan, and Lee stretched up, back bowing, to kiss him shallowly.

“Good?” Neji asked, repeating the harsher thrust with a snap of his hips as Lee fell back again, shoulders thumping against the bedroll.

“ _Please._ ” Lee begged, fingers catching in Neji’s hair, and he rubbed Lee’s tense thigh, leaning against it harder as the muscles relaxed a little more. It brought him close enough to kiss Lee, one hand sliding behind his head, while settling into a steadier rhythm.

It wasn’t fast, and Neji _burned_ with the need for more, quicker, _now_ , but every thrust sent a wave of fire through him, the twist in the pit of his stomach surging. Lee rocked and shoved up against him, even folded back on himself and pinned so tight he could hardly move, moaning into Neji’s mouth.

Neji gripped his folded thigh tight, feeling his fingertips digging into Lee’s leg as he shoved thoughtlessly against Lee, who could _not_ bend any further, and not quite able to stop himself. Lee’s hand tightened on his shoulder and Neji groaned, biting at his lower lip and breaking away to breathe, ragged gasps that did nothing to calm him or let him bring himself back under control.

Between the pressure of the orchid’s pollen affecting him and the open offer that was Lee laid out before him, taking him, taking _all of him_ and _begging_ for more, moaning and flushed and clinging-

Lee threw his head back, fingers scrabbling over Neji’s shoulder and pulling at him hard enough to drag his chest painfully against the back of Lee’s thigh keeping their bodies apart. Neji hardly felt the ache even as the pressure compressed his ribs, and he couldn’t have stopped himself for something so petty, not now.

“ _Neji._ ” Lee shuddered, his heel digging into the back of Neji’s thigh, his chest heaving as he gasped, his inner muscles tightening around Neji’s cock in pulsing flutters.

“Fuck, Lee.” Neji gasped, his rhythm falling apart as he thoughtlessly drove into Lee’s body, chasing the spiking pleasure and the searing heat of him, ragged breaths making Neji shudder, distantly aware of his throat aching and his chest tight as he dragged Lee into himself with every movement.

Despite the cresting feeling of being at the very edge, _chasing_ it, Neji’s orgasm took him by surprise when it rocked through him, sharp and cutting as much as it was blissful. He keened, clutching at Lee, kissing and biting at his jaw thoughtlessly as he shuddered through it, and Lee cried out, his hold on Neji tightening again.

Neji whined against his cheek, shuddering and struggling to breathe but aware. . .

He shifted carefully, aching and oversensitive - his cock ached even more than the rest of him, and his muscles tightened as he moved, but- Neji rubbed a hand over Lee’s folded leg and eased it down off his shoulder, letting the muscles ease and murmuring an apology as Lee let out a soft cry, back arching to compensate for the shift in position.

Neji rubbed up his thigh and hip soothingly, and then he _wriggled_ , their bellies sliding slickly together. Neji hissed, muscles tightening with a jerk, and pulled back. His still mostly hard cock slid free of Lee’s clutching body and Lee whined, reaching for him.

Neji sank down willingly, thoughtlessly, drawing Lee into his arms again, and Lee kissed him, soft and warm. Neji’s heart ached with a hot little throb that almost distracted him from how sore he was.

His embrace loosened and he looked away as Lee’s lips brushed over his cheek instead.

Lee groaned, stretching, and Neji shuddered, tipping over onto his back and letting himself half sprawl there messily, eyes closed. He was exhausted, he realised, down to his bones, and his heart hurt. His erection still wasn’t flagging. He took a quick, shallow breath and tried to compartmentalise.

Lee had taken care of him, because Lee would do anything for his teammates; Lee had-

Lee was moving away. Neji tensed, opening his eyes, and found Lee settling cross-legged at the edge of the bedroll - he wasn’t even moving a little gingerly, Neji thought, and yes he’d seen the kind of punishment Lee put his body through but. . . _Neji_ felt hot and sore all over, sweaty and worn, his throat and chest aching, his _cock_ aching, all his major muscles throbbing with sharp little pains. . .

Lee turned back towards him with a smile and a scroll in his hands. He snapped the seal and Neji spared a thoughtless moment to be so grateful to Tenten and her insistence on their being prepared ‘even when she wasn’t with them’ - and her stubbornness in finding a sealing trick Lee could, at least, open, if not write himself - as Lee offered him a canteen from the scroll, the top already loosened.

Neji groaned as he pushed himself up to take it, and Lee reached to help him. Neji twitched away before he could catch himself, and Lee passed him the canteen and withdrew a little. Neji shivered, still overheated but feeling the surface chill of fresh air on his sweaty skin, and took a sip that turned into a long drink, unable to stop himself as he almost gulped the water.

He lowered the canteen, panting, and frowned as he saw Lee not drinking from his own but only holding it low almost against his belly. Neji’s eyes trailed down to the messy smears of Lee’s own come on his skin and swallowed hard. Lee’s cock was half-hard, and Neji had to bite back a groan, _wanting_. He grimaced a little, glancing down at himself. His cock. . .

Lee hadn’t had as strong a dose of the toxin, Neji thought, only what had been lingering on Neji hismself, and squeezed his eyes closed for a moment. He would be fine. Lee’s offer had. . .

Neji shook it off swiftly. “Are you all right?” he asked, reaching out and clasping Lee’s shoulder, not thinking until after he felt hot skin under his fingers that perhaps the contact wouldn’t be welcomed - not if Lee was upset already.

Lee looked at him with a smile. “Of course. Are you. . .” Lee’s gaze drifted down his body and Neji felt a flush of heat that had little to do with the orchid’s pollen. He took a hitching breath and hurriedly brought the canteen up to his lips again, gulping at the water.

“Do you. . . I’m sorry if I pushed you to something that has hurt you.” Lee said earnestly the moment Neji lowered the canteen, and he choked.

“What? Lee! I-”

“You tried to refuse me and I pushed you,” Lee said, frowning, “I wanted to help you, but I should not have-”

Neji stopped him with a gentle hand over his mouth, and Lee met his gaze, wide-eyed. “I didn’t want . . . but not for the reasons you think.” He smiled weakly. “No, don’t apologise. I’m sorry you felt you had to- to take care of me through this.” He looked away, grimacing.

“I did not feel I must!” Lee said confidently, clasping Neji’s hand between his own and moving a little nearer. “But I _care_ for you, Neji! I know you would never have demanded- But to let you suffer when I could help you?”

Neji managed a weak smile again. Yes, he knew. He shuddered, grimacing and stifling a groan, as another uncomfortable wave of pressure rose up from deep in his chest and burning sparks rolled through his veins, in direct contrast with the miserable feeling making his chest feel tight.

He squeezed his eyes closed and reached for the canteen again, swiftly draining the rest of it. He hadn’t realised he had drunk so much. He shook his head, rubbing the back of his wrist against his temple, pushing his hair back. The fabric of his hitai-ate was damp with sweat and less than comfortable, but he didn’t touch it.

Lee’s callused fingers brushed over his shoulder and collarbone, and Neji dropped his hand, breath catching as he met Lee’s dark eyes. He swallowed thickly.

“It’s not over yet, is it?” Lee asked, lifting his hand to cup Neji’s jaw, stroking gently.

Neji felt a burn behind his eyes at the caress, unable to stop himself from leaning into it, letting out a shaky breath. He shook his head, licking his lips. “It’s not. It’s . . . mostly run its course, though,” he said, eyes flicking over Lee’s body - he wasn’t hard again, his cock had continued to soften; unlike Neji, the toxin was no longer driving him, “I can weather the rest without- It’ll be all right. Better. Than it would have been if you, _we_ hadn’t. . .”

Neji trailed off as Lee moved closer, nudging against his side. “But it will be easier on you if you. . .” His hand dropped from Neji’s face to trail down his chest, and Neji couldn’t quite stop himself from moaning. “You have already had me,” he smiled faintly, and Neji felt a different kind of warmth; he was flushing again, “if you do not regret it, then it would be no different to do it again, would it?” he asked, leaning close.

Neji couldn’t tell Lee he regretted it, couldn’t say _why_ he would regret today for . . . so much that had happened. He shook his head slightly, then grimaced. “I don’t want to hurt you, though. Lee, you’re not-” he broke off. He couldn’t exactly swear Lee _wasn’t_ used to this, though he highly doubted it - his heart ached and his stomach twisted - but. . .

“I will be fine.” Lee said, grinning, then leaned in and kissed Neji lightly. “Please, Neji. Don’t torture yourself.”

“You could-”

Lee moved around Neji, lying back, sliding a hand down his back even as Neji turned towards him again. “Come here . . . please?” he asked, as though this was for _him_ , spreading his legs and stretching out his hands towards Neji.

He couldn’t have refused, and not because of the lingering fire of the toxin in his blood.

Neji’s cock throbbed as he settled between Lee’s thighs, supporting himself on both hands and shivering under Lee’s renewed caresses.

“I can take you, Neji,” Lee said, shifting a little, “let me.”

Neji groaned, head hanging, then twitched as Lee’s knuckles ran down his chest and belly, opening his eyes to watch. Lee’s fingers were shiny with- More salve. Neji winced. He hadn’t even _thought_ -

After twice and barely a breath between, Lee no doubt _needed_ more slick to ease the way even if he _could_ take Neji’s cock again, and Neji hadn’t even paused to think about it.

Lee’s fingers wrapped around his cock and Neji jerked into the touch, hissing softly at the raw ache of the contact. He wondered faintly if this wasn’t a very bad idea for an entirely different reason - even if Lee could take him, could Neji’s body, his cock, take another round?

The fiery ache within him surged again as though in answer to that thought, and Neji whined, fingers curling into the fabric of the bedroll. Lee stroked him gently, but it was still too much, too intense, too- Neji grit his teeth as Lee fingers eased away from his cock and Lee’s hips angled up slightly in welcome, feeling dizzy with need and dropping lower. Neji pressed himself into the welcoming cradle of Lee’s thighs, coming to rest on top of him with a hitching breath as they made fuller contact. Lee’s cock was still only beginning to stiffen, but he arched into Neji all the same, sighing.

He caught Lee into a slightly rough kiss, and Lee hummed softly, hands roaming his sides and back. Neji only barely registered the slightly slicker slide of the right one on his sweaty skin, moaning into Lee’s mouth.

Neji had to break away to breathe, and Lee nuzzled against his cheek, murmuring encouragement. Neji shifted his weight, reaching down for his own cock, grasping it gingerly - another sharp throb that wasn’t even _mostly_ pleasurable and he hesitated, but Lee’s arms wound around his neck and the dizzying flames inside him fanned by the toxin made his head swim as he guided himself back into the heat of Lee’s body.

Lee moaned, muscles rippling around Neji’s painfully oversensitive cock, and it ached but- Neji let out a rough sound he couldn’t name, rocking deeper into Lee and pressing his mouth to Lee’s neck.

Lee made a soft keening noise, arching up as Neji rocked against him again, thighs flexing against Neji’s waist though he didn’t, this time, wrap his legs around Neji. He was glad. It had felt amazing and he had gloried in the feeling of Lee trying to bring him in ever closer, but it was. . . This was almost too intense as it was, even as they rocked together slowly, careful and easy.

Neji shifted his weight, moaning breathily at the change in position, and brought one arm up higher, sliding his hand over Lee’s shoulder up to his neck, then turning it and supporting himself on the back of his forearm with his palm beneath Lee’s nape. Lee stroked his shoulders and cupped his face with one hand, drawing him into another kiss.

It was soft and slow and warm, and Neji’s rocking hips slowed even further to match it as Lee’s tongue slid against his own, gentle and inviting. It made Neji ache in ways that had nothing to do with his abused body or the toxin still swirling in his blood. This. . . _This_ -

Neji broke away with a soft half-sob, and pressed his face to Lee’s neck instead, nuzzling and kissing when Lee sounded like he might speak. Lee moaned instead, rolling his hips up and tightening his thighs around Neji’s waist as he rocked down again.

Lee murmured encouragement, his cock rubbing against Neji’s belly as they moved together. Neji took a breath, then bit his lip to keep any words behind his teeth as he stroked down Lee’s side and hip, every rocking thrust stoking the warmth in the pit of his stomach, sending it bleeding out through every limb as coiling tension wound ever tighter.

This was slow and easy, careful - it had to be, there was an achy edge of pain to every movement they made together, no matter how gentle - but . . . it wasn’t taking much, not with Neji in this state, not after everything else. Neji gasped and shivered with pleasure, and Lee’s thighs eased open a little around him as Lee rocked up a little more in answer.

Neji whined, pressing into Lee’s neck more firmly, swallowing hard and trying to get himself under better control as he thrust gently and another spike of pleasure jolted up his spine, fiercer than he had been prepared for.

Lee’s hands smoothed over his back, gentling tremors he hadn’t realised were lingering.

“Lee. . .” Neji moaned, not quite able to stop himself from speaking but unable to get out anything but soft, needy pleas of Lee’s name, either.

Lee moaned and stroked Neji’s back and sides, up to cup the nape of his neck, back down as Lee’s thighs tightened their grip on him again. Neji couldn’t think, barely felt like he could _breathe_ , losing himself in the maddening slow, heated rhythm of their bodies moving together, this time feeling _all of Lee_ pressed against him, delicious and tempting and-

And would only ever be his like this, right now, and only because Neji _needed_ him - needed it - only because of the poison, never- never again.

Neji’s orgasm came with a soft sob in Lee’s ear, pleasure rippling through him as he all but curled around Lee, holding on to him as the only stable point in the world. Neji’s hips stilled immediately, his breathing hitching unsteadily and catching in his throat. Lee whined, muscles tightening around his cock in a needy flutter, and breathed his name, still rocking against him but with shallower movements now, slower.

Neji whimpered and twitched at the continuing stimulation, both arms sliding beneath Lee’s shoulders, clinging to Lee as he returned the embrace with a soft moan, shuddering beneath Neji.

Neji wanted to ask if Lee was all right, if Lee had found his own pleasure, if Neji should move, but he couldn’t find the words - any words - in his mind. “Lee.” he managed, eventually, and Lee returned it with a soft murmur of his name, rubbing his shoulder and then wrapping him in an embrace once more, tighter this time, fingers curling into his hair.

He thought faintly that he needed to get off Lee, at least, if nothing else, but he couldn’t bring himself to do so. Not when he was curled so close against Lee, comfortably entwined - not even with as overheated as Neji was, as Lee felt beneath him as well. Lee was still nuzzling into him, embrace no looser, and Neji guessed that he didn’t want to let go either.

At least there was that. Neji basked in that semi-assurance and let himself rest there for a while longer.

Eventually Neji’s cock began to soften - a little sooner, he thought, than it might have normally, though he was so exhausted and muddled from the toxin he couldn’t be sure; at least the fiery ache of desire incited - and intensified - by the fierce flame orchid was finally ebbing. The orchid’s pollen and its effects were finally burning out of his system, Neji thought, shifting carefully as his cock began to slide free of Lee’s body, pulling back enough to complete the separation all at once.

He bit back a cry at the feeling, both from the tender ache of his cock and the feeling of loss that lodged somewhere deep in his chest despite Lee still being so close in his arms.

He nuzzled Lee’s ear as he lifted his head, and couldn’t quite hold back from one more kiss, soft and needy in an entirely different way this time. _That_ thought made Neji’s breath catch - he shouldn’t have done that, for his _own_ sake if not for that of the secret he had already risked so much - but Lee responded easily, _eagerly_ , arms snug around Neji’s shoulders as their lips brushed again, then again. Lee was holding Neji tight enough - _close_ enough - to press against him fully even as he tried to ease back.

Neji let the embrace coax him into staying there a little longer, settled low over Lee with almost their entire bodies in contact. And when Lee hummed softly, a hopeful little note. . .

With a careful tilt, Neji deepened the kiss, tongue curling against Lee’s. This time he could sink into it, _just_ the kiss, could appreciate the slow sweetness and the way Lee welcomed him in and matched his intensity by turns. Lee moaned, toying with Neji’s hair, and he lingered, unwilling to pull away, until he was short of breath all over again.

When their lips parted Lee sighed, hands sliding over Neji’s shoulders, slowly loosening his embrace. Neji took a breath and pushed up, his muscles protesting even that little effort. He had intended to rise but he only moved enough to slide off Lee, rolling onto the bedroll beside him. Neji could feel the undergrowth and bare earth beneath his shoulder and back on his left, but ignored it; it didn’t bother him _nearly_ enough to try and move, and the bedroll was probably too narrow for them to rest side-by-side properly anyway.

Neji closed his eyes. He could feel Lee at his side, and only just resisted the impulse to reach out to him again. It might have been harder, Neji thought wryly, if he hadn’t been so worn out moving at all sounded like it would take about as much out of him as pulling a hakkeshou kaiten.

He didn’t realise how far he had drifted out of awareness in his weariness until the brush of a warm hand over his side made him jump, breath catching. Lee apologised, and Neji shook his head, then turned it to look at Lee, finding his expression showing curiosity and something unreadable, beyond near-exhaustion that matched his own.

It was faintly unnerving - Neji knew Lee so well, after their years on a team together, and Lee was so _open_ to begin with, that seeing an expression on Lee’s face that he couldn’t interpret was . . . strange.

“Lee?” Neji questioned, his voice thin.

Lee turned onto his side, facing Neji, reaching out with one hand. Neji shivered as it made contact, and Lee stroked his chest almost tentatively. “Neji?” he said softly, and Neji sighed. “I know the orchid’s toxin is done,” he said, and Neji winced, “are . . . you all right?”

Neji groaned quietly. How could he answer _that_? He hurt all over, he’d been _poisoned_ , he’d. . . He’d lost himself in something he could never have with the one person he had wanted so desperately for so long. He swallowed thickly and looked away again.

“You are not all right.” Lee said even more softly, and Neji snorted. “Of course not. But not. . . It seems as though it is not . . . _only_ the poison and its,” Lee hesitated and Neji would bet that he was blushing again, picturing it immediately, though he refused to turn and look, “ _effects_ that are troubling you.”

Neji shook his head, not quite a denial, and Lee rubbed over his breastbone. “Please, surely you can talk to me about it?” Lee coaxed, and Neji fought down what risked being a slightly wet laugh. If there was _anyone_ Neji could speak to - and there was not - it would certainly not be _Lee himself_.

“Especially after this, after. . .” Lee shifted a little closer, hand sliding higher, towards Neji’s collarbones. “We are teammates, and you know I would be at your side through anything, Neji; will you not let me help you with whatever it is, as you let me help you with-”

“I didn’t want you to _help_! I didn’t want to force myself on someone I love!” Neji snapped, realising the words half a moment too late to stop them spilling out. He keened, cringing, and turned away, Lee’s hand falling from his shoulder as he moved. Neji brought his arms up, hiding his face even with Lee now at his back, unable to look him in the face. He couldn’t- He had maybe shown too much of himself to Lee, in this . . . _mess_ , but he had _never_ meant to say the words.

He swallowed thickly, heart pounding painfully in his tight chest.

“Neji.” Lee said softly, and Neji’s breath caught sharply as Lee put one hand on his back. “. . .me?”

Neji whined quietly, curling up a little more. “I didn’t want you to be with me only to _help me_ , because of. . .”

“You did not force me. You did not even ask.” Lee said gently, moving closer to Neji, hand sliding over his waist, then- Neji’s breath caught as Lee came up against him, arm winding around him, chest pressed to his back. “Neji, you never would have. I know that. I know _you_.”

Neji closed his eyes. That was good; that Lee didn’t feel he had been. . . Neji agreed as much aloud, and Lee hugged him tighter. Neji brushed one hand over Lee’s own on his chest, almost giving in to the temptation to twine their fingers, then dropping his hand again.

That much _was_ good, but. . . “I didn’t want this, either.” Neji admitted, so long as his heart had already been laid out, raw and bleeding, for Lee. “To have you but to know that you. . .”

That he would never have chosen it on his own, but only given himself to Neji this way because of the toxin, because Neji _needed it_ , in only the most physical sense.

“You have been kind and . . . more than,” Neji swallowed thickly, “and thanking you would feel wrong for what you - _we_ \- have done but-”

“Don’t thank me, then.” Lee said, stroking Neji’s breastbone, and he couldn’t help but relax a little under the caress, despite the tension in his chest. “Neji, please, it is not only that you are my friend, my precious teammate, that inspired me to offer. . .”

Lee didn’t quite seem to know how to finish that, and Neji swallowed tightly, turning to look at him. “To offer yourself? To _poison_ yourself with me, to make it- easier for me to accept your help?” he said, and _fuck_ , Lee had _done that_ , who even would- “What?” He stared at Lee, his words having immediately scattered Neji’s thoughts.

Lee was blushing, but he tipped his head slightly and repeated himself. “I return your feelings, Neji. I love you too.” he added, and smiled, a little shakily. “I did not know what it would take, how it would feel, when I offered to help you with this, or when I- I kissed you to share in the effects of the fierce flame orchid. But I _wanted_ to kiss you, and I wanted. . .”

“You wanted to be- to have sex driven by a _poison_ , fuck Lee I was so dizzy with it I’m amazed I didn’t _hurt_ you!” Neji shook his head, looking away. “I’m grateful, but please, don’t- don’t tell me you feel. . .”

“Neji!” Lee cried, startling him, and clasped his hand as his gaze returned to Lee’s face. “I do not believe you would doubt me!” He brought Neji’s hand up and kissed his wrist, and Neji’s eyes widened. “As though I would ever falsely represent my heart!” Lee brought Neji’s hand to his chest - his _heart_ , which beat steady and hard beneath Neji’s palm as Lee held it there, both of his own covering it. “The idea! I hold you most precious in my heart, Neji, and I- I would do _anything_ to convince you of the truth of my heart and my honesty in speaking it!”

Neji stared in silence for probably far longer than he should have, and Lee fidgeted a little, blushing more deeply again, but neither looked away nor released Neji’s hand.

“Anything; like,” Neji said slowly, “kissing me to take in the same poison I was suffering so as not to let me suffer alone?”

Lee’s flush deepened. “I love you.” he said again, quietly, his heart beating a little quicker under Neji’s hand. He still couldn’t quite believe it, but-

He couldn’t refuse to believe Lee. And- He _knew_ Lee.

Neji felt lightheaded with relief and delight and- “Oh.”

“. . .Neji?” Lee questioned, then gasped as Neji lunged for him, ignoring the twinges of sore, overused muscles.

“Oh! Lee, I-” Neji dragged him into an embrace, and Lee laughed, returning it tightly enough to make Neji’s ribs ache. “I love you.” Neji said properly. “I’ve loved you for years and I never thought,” he faltered in his admission, “I’m so-”

Lee brought a hand up to his cheek, and Neji nudged into it, letting Lee draw him into a kiss, tender and warm like the last one they had shared. Maybe, Neji thought dizzily - this time with giddy relief and tentative joy - he should have guessed then that they were sharing more than only the sex driven by purely physical need. He’d been blinded knowing what he wished so desperately for himself, but that it was shared. . .

Lee pulled away and Neji released him immediately, breath catching as his eyes snapped open. Lee smiled at him, soft rather than his usual bright grin, and tugged Neji after him as he moved back a little more. Neji groaned and moved closer, then huffed sheepishly as he realised Lee had only been pulling him fully onto the bedroll again.

Neji shook his head slightly, sliding a hand over Lee’s hip and up his back, drawing him gently in closer until they were skin-to-skin once more. Lee shivered, letting out a soft breath, and tipped his head. Neji kissed him again, but that little shiver, and the stroke of his palm over Lee’s sticky, sweaty skin. . .

Neji broke the kiss much sooner this time, drawing back just enough to sit up. Lee made a forlorn sound and Neji stroked his side, grimacing a little with the realisation of how much they both needed a bath.

Neji leaned a little further over him, grabbing one of the extra canteens he had discarded so carelessly before, and Lee moaned, reaching. Neji hummed, amused, and offered him a hand and help sitting up, wincing as he grimaced a little on the way up and as he settled.

Lee looked at him curiously and Neji shook his head, offering the canteen. Lee drank from it while Neji pulled his bag over, rummaging through it for his own sealing scrolls.

Half an hour later, while they could still very much use a bath, they were both cleaner and more comfortable, curled together in Neji’s bedroll again but this time with a light blanket over them as well. Neji had barely had the energy to eat anything before lying down again, but Lee had pushed him insistently to accept a ration bar and he’d been right, of course - Neji did feel better. Marginally.

He remembered their lesson on the toxin as well as Lee, of course, but it was hard to care enough to do anything more now that he finally felt like he could rest, the fierce flames it had sparked in his body quieted at last.

Lee cuddled a little nearer, tucking an arm under Neji’s neck, just below where his head rested on the makeshift pillow of his bag. Neji sighed, fingers curling against Lee’s waist.

“It’s all right now, my love. Sleep for a while.”

Neji groaned softly, but he was already half asleep and he couldn’t even be sure he had truly heard the words. The soft feeling of a gentle hand stroking through his hair soothed him further, and he only heard the murmur of Lee’s voice once more, making out no words in it, as he drifted to sleep.

**Omake:**

Lee rubbed his fingertips over his throat and smiled a little, turning to the mirror before he pulled his jumpsuit up properly - hiding away the livid mark he carried on his throat with the collar. Just barely.

There was another at the nape of his neck that still wasn’t quite covered - Lee shivered, remembering being bent under Neji in their bed and almost screaming with pleasure when Neji had stifled his own cries by biting sharply at Lee’s nape, and-

“Lee?” Neji called, pulling him out of his memory, and Lee grinned at himself in the mirror, then turned away, grabbing his flak jacket.

“I am ready, my love!” Lee called back, sliding it on and leaving it unzipped for the moment as he trotted out to meet his lover.

Neji snorted, but he was smiling slightly; the faintest curve of his lips that perhaps only his teammates - and his cousin, Lee amended - might even recognise. Lee beamed at him, then pulled him into a quick, hard kiss, shivering as his hands slid up under Lee’s flak jacket and over his ribs - then moaning as Neji’s fingers brushed more marks, ones that were hidden rather better.

Not that anyone ever seemed to notice _those_ , even in the onsen, only the ones at his throat, which Neji sometimes flushed over, eyes lingering on the marks of his own biting kisses. Lee supposed people _expected_ him to be bruised in much the same way he bore calluses and scars from his training, but in honesty . . . Neji was one of very few people who ever marked Lee, these days.

. . .in bed or out of it.

Lee laughed, and Neji arched a brow at him curiously. Lee shook his head. “Nothing, my love.” he said cheerfully, and Neji’s lips pursed, eyes narrowing.

Lee slid a hand over his cheek, thumb brushing his fine cheekbone, and drew him into a softer kiss this time, moving close enough to press up against him and grateful, once again, for the fact that Neji refused to wear a flak jacket, or indeed any armour more than the mesh weave. It meant Lee could _feel_ him properly, warm and strong.

“Tenten will _murder_ us if we’re late.” Neji said softly, nipping Lee’s lower lip. “And she will say she _knows_ why we’re late, no matter why we actually are.”

Lee took a quick breath, feeling his cheeks warming.

Neji was right, Tenten _would_ \- she _had_ , a month ago, only a few weeks after they had returned from their _disastrous_ and yet strangely lucky mission resolutely secure in their new relationship, when they had been twenty minutes late to a team training session. She hadn’t let it go, and Lee hadn’t been able to stop blushing all day. Neji had been rather pink as well, but he also habitually hid his embarrassment by getting snappish.

It had not been much fun to be between them, or indeed anywhere around them, as they squabbled in their pointedly polite way. Lee had been a little glad when they decided to pit the kaiten against Tenten’s newest rain of steel again that afternoon - it was unsafe to share the same training field with them when they practised that way, and Lee had abandoned them for a spar against Gai-sensei a safe distance - two training fields - away.

Tenten had, as it happened, been _wrong_ then - they had been late not because they had gotten distracted by one another before they left, but because Neji had still been suffering a reaction migraine after having attended dinner in his clan’s compound the night before. Neji would rather take the teasing than admit to anything about his clan, even to their teammate and sensei, and Lee would not disrespect his lover’s choice.

Lee ran his fingers through one of the long locks framing Neji’s face, smiling slightly. “We had better go to meet her then!” he said brightly, and Neji laughed softly, hugging him close once more and then zipping up his flak jacket for him, smoothing it over his shoulders.

Lee grinned, basking in the little affectionate touches, and then let Neji nudge him out the door first.

“We can prove her right _later_ , at our first mission checkpoint tonight.” Neji said, and Lee nearly missed a step, breath catching.

“Neji!” Lee turned to look at him just in time to see the last traces of a smirk before he smoothed his expression.

“Objections?” Neji asked archly, and Lee felt himself blushing. Neji laughed, and they headed off towards their planned meeting place near the gates at an easy run, matching their paces without thought. Lee . . . certainly didn’t have any objections, he simply still wasn’t quite used to Neji being _flirtatious_ , or teasing. He found, as surprising as it was, that he rather loved it, though.

As he loved Neji, everything about him. Lee glanced over at his lover and met a raised eyebrow and a faint smile in return.


End file.
